The Truth Is, Doctor
by TheDoctor'sTARDISXO
Summary: "She wanted to let him know that they didn't blame him for what had happened. If they could do it all again, they would, every last second of it. They wouldn't trade any moment that they had had with the Doctor for anything. She knew all of this because they had told her and she was determined to tell him. The truth is, Doctor they'll remember you always."
1. This is Where it All Begins

**A/N: Hey guys! I bring you yet another new story! This one has been on my mind for the longest time, and i've finally decided to put fingers to keyboard and type it. It's going to be a short story, no more than four to five chapters. I always wanted to do my take on what happened after the Doctor lost the Ponds, and what if the was someone who KNEW everything about their adventures. So here's my take on it. I really hope you guys enjoy it. I'm proud of it already. Oh yeah, Doctor Who belongs to Steven Moffat and the BBC (Also, cant wait for the Xmas special!)**

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The Musee d'Orsay was exactly was exactly what she had envisioned it to be. Emma Fitzpatrick drank it all in with a smile on her face. She remembered the stories, the Doctor and Amy Pond fighting monsters with Vincent Van Gogh. Those were the stories of her childhood, the ones that led her here now viewing the works of the greatest painter who ever lived. Emma knew every adventure that Amelia Pond had been on with the Doctor, from fish fingers and custard to their heartbreaking farewell. And how did she know all of this, you ask? The woman herself had told her. Emma was the only person to know who Amy and her husband Rory really were. Time travelers forever stuck in the past out of their proper timeline thanks to a cruel twist of fate. Why did she know all of this? She had met Amy and Rory when she was only seven-years-old. Emma had always known there was something strange about the two of them. She had even had the guts to say it right to Amy's face at their first meeting. Can you imagine it? Amelia Pond, the girl who waited, getting told she was strange and out of place by a seven-year-old. Well it did happen, and Amy saw so much of herself in little Emma Fitzpatrick that from that day she had confided in the child, told her the truth, and all of those wonderful stories.

As the years went on and Emma grew older she made a promise to Amy and Rory. She promised she would find the Doctor and tell him that they didn't blame him for any of what had happened. The two of them always worried about the Doctor, Amy a bit more than Rory. Was he traveling alone? He shouldn't ever be alone, not for a moment. Did he blame himself still for their tragic fate? The Doctor always had wanted to be forgiven for everything wrong that had happened in his life, and Emma vowed to give him the closure that she felt he deserved. Amy was always so grateful for Emma, but in reality Emma was the one who was truly grateful. When her parents had died tragically when Emma was only thirteen, Amy and Rory wasted no time in adopting her as their own daughter. Emma even legally changed her name to Emma Williams on her twenty-first birthday, three weeks ago. She had to as a way to honor her adoptive parents for teaching her to dream of impossible things, and the bow-tie clad eccentric mad man responsible.

_"There was so many things that the Doctor taught me," Emma remembered Amy telling her on her twenty-first birthday as she and Rory surprised her with tickets to the Musee d'Orsay, "one of the most important was to never give up hoping, no matter how hopeless and impossible things seem."_

Emma took that to heart as she began her adventure. She was retracing the steps that Amy had taken on her adventures with the Doctor. Every place Emma went, she heard Amy's voice in her head telling her the story behind the location. Amelia Pond and her raggedy Doctor, he was more than just an imaginary friend to her. He became her best friend the one that she had lost too soon. Amy had told Emma how she knew the day would come when she'd have to say goodbye to her raggedy man, she just wished it didn't come that soon. Emma had visited their hometown of Leadworth, she went to Stonehenge and touched the same stone that one of Rory's greatest adventures began, and now she was where it all hit home, the Musee d'Orsay. The paintings of Van Gogh were exquisite just as Amy had said. Emma could envision Van Gogh painting them, she could see the church in front of her and she felt like she could hear the Doctor ranting about time moving so slowly as they waited for the monster to appear. There was one painting she was the most excited to see. The sunflowers. The ones she knew Vincent had painted for Amy herself. She saw them across the way and noticed someone else staring at them admiringly. Emma's heart quickened in her chest as she caught sight of the floppy brown hair and tweed jacket. There could be no denying that the man standing in front of that painting was the Doctor. At long last Emma was going to meet the Time Lord that forever touched so many lives.

"It's such a beautiful painting, is it not?" Emma asked as she took her place next to the Doctor. Her voice sounded strange, even to herself. She was nervous, heart hammering in her chest, palms sweaty. Most of all she was excited.

The man in the tweed jacket politely glanced her way and gave her a sad smile. Emma was momentarily lost in his brilliant green gaze. It was just as Amy had told her; his eyes did hold all the wisdom and secrets of the universe. Those were the eyes that were so ancient and old in such a young face. And the bow-tie! The bow-tie that the Doctor always swore was so very cool. Emma bit her lip to keep from giggling at the sight of it. It was more than she could possible handle.

"Oh I'm terribly sorry," the Doctor finally replied to her and Emma had the grace to shiver. His voice was just as she pictured as well, just as Amy and Rory would always describe it to be, "I'm not used to people speaking directly to me, well not much anymore. I was lost in thought, reminiscing if it were. Oh listen to me going on and on. What I mean to say is yes, it is a very beautiful painting."

Emma gave the Doctor a small smile, all nerves and unsure how to proceed from here. She wanted so bad to just jump right in and tell him everything, how Amy and Rory forgive him for whatever he believes to have been his fault, how the two of them are as happy together as they have ever been, happy and alive. How Emma herself knew so much about the Doctor, as much as it was possible for one person to know who hasn't traveled with him. She wanted to reach out and comfort him, let him know that they still love him and will always love their madman with a blue box. The box that is bigger on the inside, and the bluest of blue. But Emma knew she couldn't just blurt this entire story out to him. It needed to be handled delicately, carefully. She didn't want to scare the Doctor away if she could help it. She promised Amy and Rory that she would find the Doctor and let him know everything was okay. She wasn't about to mess this up.

"For Amy, Love Vincent." Emma heard herself whisper and noticed in her peripheral vision the Doctor stiffen slightly at the sound of Amy's name. "It is such a beautiful painting, it's the reason I came always here to the Musee d'Orsay. I just had to see it. I heard so much about it."

"It made her so happy when she saw it," the Doctor spoke though Emma got the sense he was lost in more of a memory, "it made her feel like we actually DID make a difference. I knew how much she wanted to have saved him, and in a way I think we did at least through this painting."

Emma stood watching the Doctor with a look of fierce curiosity on her face. She remembered Amy telling her almost the exact same thing. This was one of her favorite stories, one of the ones that helped to change her life. She never stopped loving that painting and to this day adored the man who had painted it.

"I'm terribly sorry," the Doctor said as he shook himself out of his memory, "where are my manners? May I ask your name?"

"Emma," Emma replied with a brilliant smile on her face, "Emma…..Williams."

The Doctor looked like he had seen a ghost, being in the Musee, now hearing the last name of the best friends that he lost; it was enough to drive the Time Lord mad. The Doctor did it to himself of course. He felt the need to honor Amy and Rory every year by going back and visiting some of the most memorable places he had been with them. He would honor them by reminiscing about the adventures they had together. The Doctor studied Emma, and studied her hard. Something about her looked familiar to him but what was it? He though back and realized that he had seen her before. Three days ago in Leadworth, and then again at Stonehenge. Who was this girl really and why was she following him? The Doctor was about to ask Emma this when something at her throat caught his attention. Around her neck she wore a necklace of a little gold "A". The Doctor recoiled instantly as if he was visibly slapped across the face. He knew that necklace; it was one that haunted his memories to this very day. One name came to mind instantly, _Amelia._

"Where did you get that?" The Doctor practically demanded of Emma pointing at the necklace. Emma reached her hand up to cup the dainty tiny letter. Amy had given her this necklace before she left for her trip.

_"When you see the Doctor, give him this. It's for him to remember me by. He knows how much it means to me, but I want him to have it. Give it to him Emma and tell him everything." _That's what Amy had told her before she left. Her necklace was both a gift for the Doctor and proof that Emma did in fact know the two of them and was not lying.

"It was a gift, from my mother." Emma answered the Doctor and again he stumbled back like he was slapped, "My adoptive mother, Amelia Williams." Emma quickly tagged on as the Doctor tried to regain his composure.

"You, you're…." The Doctor's voice just trailed off. He couldn't think correctly, let alone speak. This was too much for him. He knew there was something about this girl. He knew it was more than mere coincidence that he saw her at all the places he had been with his dear Ponds.

She nodded her understanding before saying slowly for him to understand, "I am. Hello Doctor. You have no idea how incredible it is to meet you."

"No you're joking, have to be joking. You don't know them, you CAN'T know them. There's no way, it just isn't possible." The Doctor was having a hard time believing all of this. He lost the Ponds, there was no way anyone could know who they were and there was NO BLOODY WAY anyone could know about him like Amy and Rory knew him. "Who are you REALLY and how do you know me?" The Doctor now demanded of Emma looking at her as only the Doctor could.

"I told you Doctor, I'm their daughter. Though not by blood Amy and Rory ARE my parents. They adopted me when my own parents passed away when I was thirteen. I grew up on the stories of your adventures with them. Amy told me so much about you. She told me how you first met up until when you two parted. I know you Doctor and I have so much I need to tell you."

The Doctor just glared at her now, cold and hard. This was sick; there was no person in the universe who could know all of this. He didn't know what it was Emma wanted, but he was not going to stick around to find out. The Ponds were the one topic that was off limits to everyone. They were the ghosts that haunted his every thought, his every memory. They followed him wherever he went refusing to give him a moment's peace. He deserved it though; after all it was his fault that they were gone. Like so many other things this was his fault. He caused them to meet a tragic fate. He promised that he would keep them safe, protected and bring them home in one peace. Look at how well he did. He shouldn't even be called the Doctor anymore since he failed at saving the two people who meant the world to him. The girl who waited and the Last Centurion. No, there was no way this little human knew them or him for that matter. As quick as he could the Doctor spun on his heel and put as much distance between him and Emma as he could. Emma was persistent though, she matched him every step of the way. The Doctor knew he needed to get to the TARDIS and fast. He would not allow this one human to reduce him to nothing by using his friend's memories against him.

"Doctor stop, please." Emma called out to him as she pushed past people in the crowded exhibit trying to keep up with him, "I have so much I need to tell you, please just listen to me!" This was hopeless Emma thought. There was no way she was going to get him to listen to her. Oh what was she going to do? She had made a promise, and damnit all she was going to keep it.

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**And there we have the beginning of the story. You know the drill: Read, REVIEW, Enjoy. Same as usual. I should be getting around to updating my other stories soon. Don't worry guys, I haven't forgotten about you my lovelies OR my other stories. Well cyberhugs and love to all! ALLONS-Y!**

**TheDoctor'sTARDISXO  
**


	2. I Swear on Fish Fingers & Custard

**A/N: HELLLLLLOOOOOOOO STONEHENGE! I'm BAAAAAACK! Did you guys miss me? I would love to say that I have a million and one excuses as to why i've been gone for so long, but the truth is I don't. The only thing i can say is that i'm sorry, I hope you'll forgive me and still love me and I'll have more story updating soon! Now Remember: Doctor Who is owned by Steven Moffat & the chaps at the BBC. I own a sonic screwdriver.**

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Emma ran as fast as her legs could carry her. Amy and Rory didn't lie when they said the Doctor was a fast one. She nearly lost him in the Egyptian exhibit, but caught up to him right outside the Musee. Emma knew she had to somehow get the Doctor to believe her, to stop and listen to her. She made a promise that she intended to keep. Faster the Doctor walked in an attempt to shake this human and make for the TARDIS. He took a sharp left and another quick right leading Emma in circles, waiting for the opportune moment to lose her completely. No matter how hard he tried though she just wouldn't give up. She has Amy's stubbornness and willpower he'll give her that much, but she was not his precious Amelia Pond, and she DID NOT know him. Another sharp left later and the Doctor reached the TARDIS. He glanced over his shoulder have expecting to see Emma at the mouth of the alley he just came down but she wasn't there. He chuckled to himself, a sorry sad sound, before digging around his tweed jacket for the TARDIS key. Now where on Earth did he put that thing? It wasn't in the left pocket maybe this time he stuck it in the right?

"Fish fingers and custard!" He heard a voice from right behind him and froze mid-search. Emma Williams had caught up with him. Her voice was a bit squeaky and she sounded out of breath, but she managed to catch him.

"I'm sorry, what?" The Doctor asked her as he cautiously turned to face her. He saw it, the same defiant gaze that Amy had, one that showed she had something to say and that he better shut up and listen.

"I said fish fingers and custard." A deep breath here, "I swear to you on fish fingers and custard that I really am who I say and that you need to listen to me. I came so far Doctor, just in the hopes of seeing you. I made a promise raggedy man and I'll be damned if you don't stop and listen to me."

That sure did ruffle the Doctor's feathers a bit. He just didn't know what to think of this girl. She was so much like his Amy in terms of personality, but he also saw bits of Rory the Roman when he saw the gentleness in her eyes. If she really was telling the truth, and his dear Ponds did raise her then they did one hell of a job. Emma Williams was every bit like the Amy and Rory he remembered.

"Now why should I believe a word of what you have to say to me? Just because you say fish fingers and custard I'm supposed to believe you, believe that you are Amy and Rory's daughter and that you've come all the way from New York just to find me. It's preposterous. No one in their right mind would go out of their way to hunt me down just to tell me a story, especially to tell a tale of people they don't even know." Emma was a bit taken aback. She heard the hurt, sadness, and anger in the Doctor's voice as he spoke to her. She saw the hidden rage, the burning sadness all reflected in his ancient eyes. A little voice in the back of her mind told her that if he really wanted to he could do her some serious harm. "For all I know you're an alien life form out to pick a fight with the last of the Timelords. Is that your angle? Kick the Doctor while he's down? Use the one thing that is sure to drive him to the brink of madness and watch him snap? I am far too old and…..far too tired to deal with the likes of you. What do you want from me, WHAT DO YOU WANT?

Emma gasped and stumbled backwards and the sudden ferocity in the Doctor's voice. This was a bad idea, a very, very bad idea. She never wanted to cause him any pain; she just wanted him to know the truth. No one should have to spend the rest of their lives living in guilt for something that wasn't their fault. In her mind she saw Amy and Rory and how worried they were for their friend. She remembered Amy sitting in the parlor; head cocked toward the window always listening for the sound of the Doctor, the sound she knew could never reach her ears again. She would also often catch Rory deep in thought remembering those 2,000 years he spent waiting for Amy outside the Pandorica. The Doctor was still so much a part of their daily lives even though they could never again be a part of his. Emma took a deep breath and steadied herself; she faced the Doctor now and took in all of his burning gaze and questioning looks. She had piqued his curiosity, she could tell that much. Maybe that was all she needed to get him to listen. Stupid, stubborn old raggedy man, ever so much the Doctor from her parents stories.

"Please Doctor, just listen to me. I am human not some alien out to pick a fight with you. If you don't believe that then use your Sonic Screwdriver to take a reading. Now don't you dare argue with me. I know about your screwdriver, and I know that," here she pointed to the TARDIS, "is your ride. I know it's called the TARDIS and stands for Time and Relative Dimension In Space. I also know that it's bigger on the inside, has a swimming pool, and you call her Sexy. Now will you please just hear me out? Five minutes, that's all I'm asking. Oh and do close your mouth, you look like a goldfish.

The Doctor promptly closed his slack jaw before letting out a good natured chuckle. It has been a while since he chuckled like that, since he felt any joy. This human really did remind him of Amy. He thought for a moment before reaching a conclusion, he decided to hear her out. Honestly, what harm could it do? There was always the small chance that she really was Amy and Rory's daughter and if she was, think of the possibilities. He could get the answers to so many questions that have haunted his mind day after day. Maybe, just maybe he could finally get the closure he deserved.

"Oh all right," The Doctor finally said with a sigh, "I'm prepared to hear you out. You have five minutes. Tell me everything, skip the boring bits and try to convince me. If you are who you claim to be, the adoptive daughter of Amelia Pond and Rory Williams then I will believe you based on your story. Go on then, impress me."

Emma told the Doctor everything. She poured open her heart and soul to this Timelord. She told him everything starting at the beginning. She told him how she met Amy and Rory when she was only seven. She saw them walking down the Avenue and was struck by their clothing which looked so out of place for New York. She told him about the first time she met the Ponds, at her mother's dinner party and how she called Amy out on not fitting in and being different. Amy confided in her that night that she actually was from a different time period, and loved how much Emma reminded her of her younger self, the little girl who dreamed impossible dreams about a mad man with a blue box that was bigger on the inside and had a swimming pool. Emma moved on to tell the Doctor how she had lost her birth parents at the age of thirteen in a car accident and how Amy and Rory wasted no time in adopting her as their own daughter. She even told the Doctor about the promise she made on her twenty-first birthday after she changed her name to Emma Williams and her adoptive parents gave her tickets to visit the Musee d'Orsay in hopes of her finding the Doctor. When Emma has finished her tale she found the Doctor deep in thought, processing everything he had just heard.

"What are they doing with themselves in New York?" He asked voice barely above a whisper that Emma had to strain to hear him.

"Well, Amy is a writer and a very well known one at that. Rory has a little garden; he's become very into gardening since they first arrived in New York."

"They're okay there? After everything that happened between us, after everything that went wrong they're not living in regret?"

"Of course not Doctor," Emma responded and reached out to take his hand in hers. He flinched, but accepted her touch nonetheless, "they're happy, so very happy and so very in love. All they do is talk about you. They're always wondering what you're up to and how you're getting on without them. It's never a dull moment with Amy and Rory. They always make me laugh with such wonderful tales of your adventures together.

"But it's my fault they're there in the first place. I promised I would get them home safe and I failed. How could they possibly talk of me like nothing has changed? I'm the reason they're stuck out of their timeline and can never get home. I've failed them just as I've failed so many others."

Emma squared her shoulders and forced the Timelord to meet her gaze. She did not like to hear the Doctor talk like this. Amy was right, he still did blame himself for what had happened in Manhattan and that wasn't right. How much longer could the Doctor go living with the guilt of what had happened? What could such immense guilt do to a person like him, a person who has seen so much loss? That's it; it was time for Emma to put an end to that.

"Listen to me Doctor, "Emma spoke fiercely hoping to help the Doctor see that he wasn't to blame, "Don't ever blame yourself for what happened to them. They don't blame you. So many times Amy and Rory have both told me that they would do it all over again in a heartbeat. Every adventure Doctor, form fish fingers and custard to the Angels in Manhattan. They'd do it all again." The Doctor looked at Emma with intense disbelief written all over his ancient, handsome face. Emma continued on though, she would make him see that he wasn't to blame. "You want to know what Amy told me, raggedy man? She told me: 'Emma I know the Doctor, he always wants to be forgiven for every bad thing that has happened in his life. He always blames himself. You tell him Emma, tell that raggedy man it is time to forgive himself for this and show another deserving companion the stars. There were many companions before Rory and I, and I know there will be many after us. That doesn't change how much I love that raggedy man, or how much I still don't blame him for any of this.'"

Without knowing why and without pausing for a moment to think the Doctor enveloped Emma in a tight embrace and just held her. She has somehow become a lifeline to him, someone to put him back right. This one young girl has given him the greatest gift he could ask for. Emma Williams helped the Doctor to begin to forgive himself, and blessed him with the closure he so desperately wanted and needed. He now knew what had haunted his ever thought since that fateful day, he knew that they were happy and so very much in love with each other. The Doctor also knew that he would forever be in Amy and Rory's hearts in the same way they were forever in his. The Doctor wracked his brain at that moment for something nice to do for Emma. She had given him everything he needed and more, and he had treated her harshly and with anger. He needed to fix that. He knew Amy would never forgive him if she found out her how daughter was treated by him. Of course one thing came to mind and he knew it was perfect for her. He released her from his embrace, took her hand firmly in his and smiled at her.

"I'm sorry Emma, for how I treated you early. It was wrong of me to get so cross with you. Allow me to apologize." And with that he snapped his fingers and the TARDIS door swung open. What other way was there to show how sorry he was for being cross? He was going to show her the stars.

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**There you have it: Chapter 2! I planned this whole story out a while back and it should measure about 5-6 chapters long. Yay for short stories! You know the drill: Read, Enjoy, REVIEW! Give me your feedback! Tell me how much you love it/Hate it/ want more to it! I love you guys! Allons-y and Cyberhugs for now!**

**XOXO**

** TheDoctor'sTARDISXO  
**


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